Sawyer young feature story

The Fall that led to the Rise of Sawyer Young

Cheaply fouled away from the play, aching in pain on the ground with a broken collarbone and turf rubber sticking to his face. Sawyer Young’s senior season was over.

Soccer runs through the DNA of Young, whose relationship with the sport is unbreakable.

Christopher Young knew his son was going to be great at a young age.

“Right when he could kick the ball I knew I had to sign him up for a team,” Christopher said.

Christopher made sure Young was always involved in club and school soccer.

“He’s always been on me with soccer and helped me become the player I am today,” Young shared.

As the time for high school soccer arrived, Christopher had one thing to say to the head soccer coach of Lebanon Trail High School, Kenneth Hegmann.

“After his first game, hopefully, he’ll show you how much of a special player he’s going to be,” Christopher told coach Hegmann.

Entering his first year of high school soccer, Young did not know what to expect. He did know that he was ready to play.

“Coming out of middle school, I didn’t really have any expectations for myself,” Young said. “I just knew that I was going to come into the situation and not let anyone else outwork me.”

After his freshman season came to an end, Young’s coach knew he had himself a talent.

“Sawyer knows how to dominate the midfield and is an incredible player for his age,” Hegmann said. “He is going to be the best player in the district.”

From his freshman to junior year in high school, Young won the team’s MVP award in three consecutive years. He was also announced first-team All-District his sophomore year.

“My first three years of high school went better than expected,” Young said. “I felt myself growing as a player and becoming something that had lots of potential.”

Before his senior season started, Young was back in action in club soccer after months of delay due to COVID-19. However, he ended up breaking his collarbone in a game and was sidelined for two months.

“I was cleared around December and was preparing myself for the high school season opener,” Young said. “I had so much anger and pain built up for that game and that drove me.”

The lights were shining, the whistle sounded and the Lebanon Trailblazers kicked off into action against the Centennial Titans. Young put in a solid first-half performance and was ready to play another 40 minutes.

The second half began but would not last long for the star player.

“I was completely tripped away from the play and I knew my season was over,” Young said.

Young was fouled off the ball, hit the ground hard and broke the same collarbone. His game was cut short, and his season was finished.

“I honestly thought I wouldn’t play soccer again and I had no idea where life was taking me,” Young admitted. “I didn’t want to give up soccer because it became everything I knew.”

Young revealed he was at his lowest of lows and did not think he would play college soccer. In less than 24 hours, it took one unpredictable phone call to rewrite his future.

“I hopped on a phone call the next day with a college coach and they offered me a visit,” Young said.

Young visited the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor and enjoyed everything about it. He felt the love from the coaches and knew it was where he was going to prove himself again.

Young felt he had fallen behind and was doing two to three workouts a day, not letting himself take time for granted.

His first college practice rolled around and Young was taking starter repetitions, which pushed him to keep working. Young has started every game this year for UMHB and logged over one thousand minutes.

“I took the starter spot from day one and ran with it,” Young said. “I grew back to who I was and leaned on the injury as a motivation tool.”

Young’s style and swagger on the field have not changed, and his drive for success and accolades remains the same.

Cheap fouls are remembered and never forgotten. Young has certainly proved that an athlete’s lowest moment can lead to their greatest success.